Kentucky football report card: How did the Wildcats grade out against Southern Miss?

HATTIESBURG, Miss. — It might have been ugly to most, but Kentucky coach Mark Stoops thought the Wildcats’
24-17 win against Southern Miss on Saturday was “a thing of beauty.”

The Golden Eagles held a substantial yardage advantage, 364 to 254. The Golden Eagles had 19 first downs to the Wildcats’
12, but it was Kentucky that started 1-0 — about the only number that mattered when the sun went down at M.M. Roberts Stadium.

“That shows a lot of character, a lot of guts, a lot of determination from that football team to come out and win that game
when you’re not playing your best football,” Stoops said after the game.

Here’s how we graded the performance:

Offense: C-minus

It was more bad than good. Seven points came on a defensive scoop and score, which means the offense scored just 17 points
on 254 yards — that’s not a lot.

Johnson missed a few throws, but his overall performance was steady. He completed 11 of 20 passes for 176 yards and a score.
He rushed for another touchdown. But the ball was out of his hands for much of the night.

Sophomore running back Benny Snell had a busy workday of 20 carries, but the bulldozer was bottled up. He rushed for 67 yards
and an average of 3.3 yards per carry. The wildcat formation wasn’t working, but neither was any facet of the run game. Kentucky
averaged just 2.2 yards per carry.

Perhaps the offensive line was the root of the inefficiency. Center Bunchy Stallings missed a big chunk of the game with an
ankle injury, and Gran said continuity was lost after that. Kentucky wasn’t getting a push up front, and there could be depth
concerns moving forward.

As for the positive on offense? Junior tight end C.J. Conrad caught 3 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown.

Kentucky only had 55 offensive snaps compared to Southern Miss’ 78.

Defense: A-minus

Kentucky’s defense won the game. How often has that been the case?

The much-criticized defensive line impressed, and senior nose guard Matt Elam was right in the middle of it. Southern Miss
running back Ito Smith had no room to run. He managed just 37 yards on 16 carries — an average of 2.3 yards per carry.

The defensive line was strong, but Kentucky’s outside linebacker duo was stronger. Juniors Josh Allen and Denzil Ware were
better than the Southern Miss players tasked with blocking them. They combined for 2 sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss. Oh, and
Allen forced a fumble and Ware recovered 2 fumbles. The second went for a 20-yard scoop and score.